What exactly is Affordable Housing?

The simple answer is: “Housing for households whose housing needs are not met by the open market and rent charged for them is linked to local incomes.”

But to understand what affordable housing fully means today, we need to cover a bit of history first.

In the past, houses built by councils and housing associations (often referred to as council houses or social rented housing) provided a supply of houses which could be rented for a ‘within your means’ sum.

Rental charged was based on a formula which took into account local wages and property values and allowed people to work without being dependent upon housing benefit.

For much of southern England, rents came in at around 50% of local market rents.

This is no longer the case. Councils and housing associations have replaced their social rented housing with affordable housing.

There are different types of affordable housing available in Cornwall

Social rented housing

Social rented housing is owned and let by local authorities including Cornwall Council and housing associations. These homes are offered at the lowest rents which are set by the Government.

Affordable rented housing

Affordable rented housing is owned and let by housing associations and homes are managed and maintained in the same way as social rented homes, but higher rents can be charged than for social rented housing (up to 80% of open market rent).

Intermediate Housing

Intermediate housing is homes to both to rent and buy, which are aimed at those households who can’t afford the open market but can afford more than very low social rents.

Additional consultation took place across the Parishes during December 2014 and January 2015. Please see the following documents;